Can it be true? Did I actually enjoy the VMAs the other night sans a sense of irony?

Indeed, it seems musicians are making a comeback to the Mtv airwaves. Kanye the Douche notwithstanding, that was one of the best award/performance shows I’ve seen in a while. Lady Gaga is freakish and amazing – she’s this decade’s Madonna, Grace Jones, Debbie Harry, and Cher all rolled into one tiny package. They say Pink was singing live as she flung herself around on the trapeze, but frankly, this is one performance during which a little lip-synching wouldn’t bother me.

And shudder as I do to refer to Green Day as the grand-daddies of the show, their longevity is as impressive as their punk-rock spirit to flood the stage with unruly ticket-holders during their number. They’ve been with me since high school and they just keep getting better. For someone who graduated in the nineties, this is saying a lot – if you’re in your thirties you know we Gen Xers once had to accept ‘thong, th-thong’ as a popular lyric.

It was a dark time.

Still, most of the highlights of the show were from new performers including Gaga and Muse, and the new royalty – Jay-Z, Alicia Keys, Beyonce, and Acrobatic-Pink. Dare I say, Music Television made me feel young again.

The low-lights

The MJ dancer who nearly fell over during the Smooth Criminal lean. Bummer, dude.

Madonna’s preachy, loosely-tied-together speech. The best thing about her appearance was her hair.

Tracy Morgan – Eminem sketch comedy. I like M, but it’s not a good thing when the rapper from Detroit is funnier than the comedian.

Published: Monday, 14 September 2009